Belonging
by LianneZ4
Summary: AU. They used to be two, but now Peter is a part of them. P/E/N


**BELONGING**

**Summary: AU. They used to be two, but now Peter is a part of them. P/E/N**

A/N: Written for the Lightning Round of run-the-con for the prompt "After all these years". Beta-read by Rabidchild.

* * *

_His shirt was the wrong color. Or maybe it was the tie… There was a permanent wrinkle on his forehead now. Was his hair truly showing signs of graying?_

"This is a bad idea. What the hell was I thinking?" moaned Peter as he stared at himself in the mirror.

"Hey. Stop being so nervous. You've planned this for weeks, remember? You're gonna be fine."

"What if I forget what to say? What if – "

"Peter. Breathe." Stepping next to him in the mirror, Neal suddenly frowned. "And stop messing with your tie," he ordered and not so gently swatted at Peter's fingers.

"Hey!"

"Hush. Let me fix this."

Peter stood there awkwardly as Neal carefully undid his tie and then made it into a perfect knot. With a small frown, he straightened Peter's shirt and fixed his cufflinks. "Now that's better. See? You look great."

With his lover's support, Peter slowly began to calm down. Then he panicked again.

"Wait! Do you know where – "

"The small velvet box in your left pocket."

Peter checked the pocket, then gave Neal a sheepish grimace. "Right."

"See? Nothing to worry about. Now go and sweep El off of her feet, Peter."

With steady fingers but feeling like a nervous wreck inside, Peter once again opened the miniature box and stared at the dark blue diamond. "Do you think that she'll like it?"

"Of course she will."

"Are you sure? I mean…"

"Peter, I've known Elizabeth for nearly her whole life. She wants this just as much as you."

Peter remained silent.

It'd been several years since he had met El and Neal; since the three of them had become a team; since they'd fallen in love; since they'd become lovers. But every now and then, Peter still had doubts… doubts whether this would last, whether Neal and El truly saw him as one of them, whether it wasn't just a strange but incredible dream that would suddenly be over and he would wake up back into his former life.

'_What if she says no?'_

"Everything that's worth something is usually a risk," said Neal as if he could read Peter's thoughts. "But the Peter Burke who broke into the Egyptian embassy to save my neck isn't a coward."

Peter released a deep breath. "You're right."

Suddenly, Neal smiled. "She'll love it, Peter. The legend, the gesture, everything."

"Unless she's upset that we stole it without her," said Peter dryly.

Neal smirked. "Well, that would have been interesting – to invite your soon-to-be-fiancée to rob the royal palace with you so that she could get her an engagement ring."

Peter smiled almost despite himself and a few of the painful knots in his stomach eased. "I have been planning this for a while, haven't I? Hmm."

"Yes you have."

Peter looked at Neal. "Are you sure…"

"Yes, I'm sure. I'm okay with this, Peter." Neal smiled. "Now go and make El happy."

For the last time, Peter checked himself in the mirror. Then he went to propose to the woman he loved.

o - o - o

"You couldn't sleep either."

"No. … I knew you'd be awake."

Elizabeth yawned. "You're really insufferable sometimes, you know that?"

Neal just responded by pulling her closer into a hug. For a moment, they just sat in the dark kitchen, quiet.

At last, it was Neal who broke the silence. "So do you like it?"

"I love it. You two have chosen well."

Neal smiled. "Good."

Elizabeth snuggled closer next to him, putting her head on his shoulder.

"You were right," said Neal suddenly. "Peter needed this, something tangible and real that he could hold onto."

"I'm always right," replied El, but it came off as more tired than smug.

They remained standing in front of the kitchen window until Neal's feet started getting cold.

He patted El's back. "Come on. Let's get back to Peter."

Their kiss wasn't long or particularly deep, but it was familiar and comforting. It was them.

Quietly, they returned back to the bed to Peter, who was still sleeping peacefully, not knowing that he had been temporarily abandoned. Neal wondered whether El's thoughts at the moment mirrored his own – that they were so lucky to have Peter. That they didn't deserve him. Before, their relationship – while always strong – had sometimes been volatile and ugly; because El could be manipulative and vicious and Neal couldn't give up his masks. But Peter completed them, grounded them like a safe anchor. Together, the three of them were whole.

Climbing back into the bed, Neal and El took Peter between them, enveloping their hands at his chest.

**THE END**


End file.
